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Drawing with Pastels and paper mache paste…..

Today River wanted to use pastels…she uses them sometimes at her art class and she’s been wanting to use them again. So, I wanted to come up with a fun little art project using them in a different way. I found this project on the KinderArt website. They have a lot of great ideas!

First, we needed to get the supplies together……paper (I like to use thick watercolor paper….it works very well when you are using a “wet” medium! But you could use any type of paper that you have!!), a brush, a container with a bit of water, cornstarch, glue, and pastels.

You have to make the paper mache paste…and there are many different recipes you can use..I like to keep it simple and just take a little bit of water, glue and corn starch. Mix them all together and you’ve got it..simple. Then, you want to take your brush and spread it across your paper…get it nice and wet!

Then, just start drawing..or having your little one start drawing! The paper mache paste makes the pastels glide on much easier and they have a more vibrant color. I think children really enjoy using the pastels this way because it gives them a different texture….more like a thick paint. If the paper starts to dry out..just reapply the paper mache… (if you go over a section that has been drawn on..it may make the drawing spread a bit..so be careful…though this is a neat effect…..)

River really enjoyed this project and worked on her drawing for a long time….she does a great job filling up the whole paper…some children have to be encouraged to spread their work out…they get a giant piece of paper and only work on a small area….

She made sure to use every color in the box! This was a very easy art project that got great results!